Thursday, May 12, 2016

A new entitlement sponsor isn't the only new thing that is bracing Canada's NASCAR Series Many changes and many things will stay the same for the series from 2015 where Scott Steckly won his fourth series championship by four points, holding off an end-of-season points surge by Jason Hathaway. This season many things change but many stay the same. One new thing is the fact that The NASCAR News Source will be giving you all of the latest news, original stories and results!

New Entitlement Sponsorship in Canada

NASCAR and Pinty's Delicious Foods Inc. announced today a six-year series entitlement sponsorship agreement of NASCAR’s Canadian-based series. Beginning Jan. 1, 2016, the series will be known as the NASCAR Pinty’s Series. Pinty’s (Pin-tees), founded in 1943, produces and provides a complete range of premium quality fresh and frozen chicken products to the retail and food service industry throughout Canada. Pinty’s has been a contingency sponsor of the series since 2012. Recognizing the tremendous value of sponsorship and activation at the touring series level, Pinty’s expanded its investment to become the entitlement sponsor and a NASCAR Official Partner. Pinty’s progression is similar to K&N Filters and Whelen Engineering, which entered the sport as contingency sponsors and elevated their participation to series entitlement. We welcome Pinty's to the Entitlement Sponsorship Family joining Sprint (until the end of 2016), Xfinity, Camping World, Menards, K&N, and Whelen.

Schedule adds a Returning Racetrack in 2016

The schedule hasn't changed much from 2015 with the exception of the series returning to Honda Indy in downtown Toronto for the first time since 2011. It will headline the racing action on Saturday July 16th. On Sunday the Verizon Indy Car Series will be taking the streets of Toronto. Also two races at CTMP, a.k.a. Old Mosport, will bookend the summer on the Victoria Day and Labour Day long weekends, the latter in support of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Along with the season finale at Kawartha Speedway on Sept. 17, a third Ontario event will take place at Sunset Speedway in Innisfil in mid-June. Four races in Quebec, including the famed Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, round out the schedule along with the traditional midsummer western swing to Edmonton and Saskatoon and a late August visit to Nova Scotia.

New Sponsors with New Faces

This relative change in culture has already attracted the interest of several other Canadian companies. Bombardier subsidiary Can-Am will have its logo on the hood of young Quebec pilot Alex Labbe for the full season. Halton Hills native and 2015 Jostens Rookie of the Year Gary Klutt will also run the full schedule with backing from Pioneer Family Pools.Patrick Dussault, a talented young Quebecer who jumps from international Formula Ford racing, will enter five races with Jiffy Lube of Quebec and veteran racer Jean-François Dumoulin will contest half the season with support from Canadian automotive parts manufacturer Spectra Premium Industries. This partnership is unique, in that Spectra will use the challenging environment of motorsport to develop and test a new radiator.

Champion Sidelined?

Several drivers are still struggling for financial support, chief among them being 2015 series champion Scott Steckly. While his team will have three cars at the season opener at Mosport, Steckly finds himself sidelined after the withdrawal of long-time sponsor Canadian Tire. “We’ve been searching for two years trying to get something together,” Steckly said in an interview. “It just makes no real business sense for me to be in the car at the first race when I don’t have the proper funding to do it. “We’re hoping for an owner’s championship (with combined points in one car from different drivers). I might be in it (a car) for three or four ovals — who knows?”. Steckley of course as we noted about is a four time champion in the Series. Without a defending Champion drivers like L.P. Dumoulin, Alex Labbe, Gary Klutt, and Kevin Lacroix will have a chance to take it to the top of the Pinty's Series!

JACOB Companies, a full-service general contractor that serves many states up and down the East Coast, has agreed to a multi-year deal to be the entitlement sponsor for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races at Dover International Speedway, track officials announced today.

The first event in the new partnership takes place this Friday, May 13, when the "JACOB Companies 200" NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race takes the green flag at the Monster Mile (5:30 p.m., Fox Sports 1).

"JACOB Companies is excited for the opportunity to sponsor the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race in Dover and partner with Dover International Speedway," said Don Perry, president of JACOB Companies. "We are looking forward to a great weekend of racing in Delaware, and can’t wait to present the Monster trophy in Victory Lane on Friday to the winner of the JACOB Companies 200."

"We’re extremely pleased to add JACOB Companies as an important partner," said Mike Tatoian, Dover International Speedway’s president and CEO. "We know our fans love the physical, competitive racing of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and we are proud to have the trucks as an exciting part of our spring tripleheader for 18 years now. Having JACOB Companies join us for this event is a win-win for everyone."

JACOB Companies, established in 2006, is licensed for construction management, design and building servicing the eastern seaboard stretching from New England to Florida.

The May 13-15 NASCAR tripleheader weekend at Dover International Speedway also includes the "Ollie’s Bargain Outlet 200" NASCAR XFINITY Series Dash 4 Cash race on Saturday, May 14 and the "AAA 400 Drive for Autism" NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday, May 15.

For tickets or more information, call 800-441-RACE or visit DoverSpeedway.com. You can also keep up with the Monster Mile at Facebook.com/DoverInternationalSpeedway, or on Twitter at @MonsterMile and Instagram at @MonsterMile.(Dover International Speedway)

Smithfield and Waffle House will team up with Richard Petty Motorsports for the iconic Bristol Night Race August 20. Aric Almirola will pilot the No. 43 Smithfield/Waffle House Ford in one of the most popular races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. As part of the partnership,

The Bristol Night Race will mark the third time Smithfield, Waffle House and Richard Petty Motorsports teamed up on track. Through the three-year partnership, the companies created Waffle House Race for Rewards, an app that allows patrons to earn points by eating at Waffle House and redeem those points for Waffle House merchandise and Smithfield racing gear. This season, fans on Race for Rewards can redeem 250 Race for Rewards points and be part of history in the making. The 250 Race for Rewards points will gain fans sponsorship of a portion of the car. Sponsorships limited to 1,500.

“Smithfield is a valued partner of Waffle House, and we’re thrilled to share in their racing program with Richard Petty Motorsports and Aric Almirola,” said Walt Ehmer, CEO, Waffle House. “This program allows us to reward our customers with unique products and opportunities. Racing, especially in the Bristol Night Race, brings a great platform to give back to our customers and earn some new ones too.”

“We’re thrilled to bring our partner Waffle House into our racing program at Smithfield,” said Bob Weber, VP – Sponsorships, Smithfield Foods. “Two years ago, we teamed up with Waffle House and brought the consumer the Race for Rewards program. We’re excited for fans to be able to help ‘sponsor’ the No. 43 at Bristol with their name on the car. Waffle House already provides Smithfield bacon and other pork products to the consumer, and now, through this partnership, they get to bring racing and the famed No. 43 Ford.”

Richard Petty Motorsports is in their fifth year of partnership with Smithfield Foods and the third year partnering with Waffle House. Last season, Almirola scored a fourth-place finish at Richmond International Raceway in the No. 43 Smithfield/Waffle House Ford.

“We’re thrilled to have Waffle House joining Smithfield on our No. 43 Ford,” said “The King” Richard Petty. “The patrons at Waffle House are overwhelmingly NASCAR fans. It’s exciting to pair three popular brands together to give back to race fans and Waffle House patrons.”

Almirola will hit the track for the Bristol Night Race August 19 for practice before the iconic night race on August 20 broadcasts live on NBC. (Richard Petty Racing)

INNISFIL, ON - Sunset Speedway is proud to announce a brand new affiliation with Dickies Canada for the 2016 race season. The partnership will see Dickies become the official clothing supplier of Sunset Speedway, as well as the presenting sponsor for June 18th’s Leland 300 for the NASCAR Pinty’s Series.

“We’ve known Mark [Dilley] for quite some time through a few different endeavors, and he’s always been a joy to work with,” explains Dickies’ Marketing Manager Ryan Sampson.“It’s incredible to see what he and his staff have been able to accomplish at Sunset over the last several seasons. Their energy is contagious, and we’re excited to be a part of their team for the 2016 season. Sunset’s fan base is uniquely passionate and their events have an atmosphere to them unlike anything else – it’s going to be an honor to share in that with them this summer”

June 18th’s event will see Canada’s national series – the NASCAR Pinty’s Series – return to Sunset for their second ever visit to the 1/3-mile oval. Their inaugural visit saw Alex Tagliani craft a near-perfect performance, leading 193 of 300 laps en route to victory lane.

“The NASCAR Pinty’s Series put on an incredible show in 2015 and we can’t wait to see what they have planned for a follow-up,” says Sunset Speedway General Manager Mark Dilley. “The Sunset schedule is full of ‘can’t miss’ events and the Leland 300 presented by Dickies is, without question, going to be something our fans will be talking about all year long”

“Dickies has long been a supporter of racing on a provincial and national level, and we can’t wait to welcome them to our program,” continues Dilley. “2015 was a huge year for us, but we’re all ready to do whatever it takes to make 2016 even bigger. With the help of Dickies and the rest of our marketing partners – we’re going to make this season something to remember.”

Advanced tickets for the Leland 300 presented by Dickies will be released to www.SunsetSpeedway.ca in the coming weeks. For more information, fans can visit the official Sunset Speedway Facebook page and follow @Sunset_Speedway on Twitter. (Sunset Speedway)

Parker Kligerman will be returning to his roots in ARCA in a Cunningham Motorsports entry at New Jersey Motorsports Park for the ARCA 150 on May 28th. He will be driving for Cunningham Motorsports in the teams #22 Entry. 8 years ago Parker Kligerman made his ARCA Racing Series debut at NJMP where he qualified 2nd and finished 6th, Kligerman would go on to win 9 times in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards. Kligerman has raced in all 3 of NASCAR's higher series and currently drives the #92 for Ricky Benton in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Kligerman is also a analyst for NBC Sports NASCAR Coverage. This will be Kligerman's first ARCA Race since 2009 in Rockingham where he won. Kligerman's best finish at Millville (NJMP) is 2nd in 2009. Expect Kligerman to be a top runner throughout the race and certainly a contender in the series! (Koelle,2016)

Preece Rolls Onto Dover

DOVER, Del. – Ryan Preece will run the fast one-mile at Dover International Speedway for the first time in Saturday’s Ollie’s Bargain Outlet 200 NASCAR Xfinity Series race.

Preece, the 2013 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion, is carrying momentum from his best finish of the season – a 15th in the recent Xfinity Series stop at Talladega Superspeedway.

Preece, who will be driving the Iron Source/Meding’s Seafood Chevrolet Saturday. rides 17th in Xfinity driver points in his rookie season.

“It’s another first-time track for us, and I’m ready to go,” Preece said. “Dover is a very fast track for a one-mile, but I’m looking forward to getting out there and giving it a shot. I’m sure we’ll have another good car.”

Practice is scheduled at Dover at 10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Friday. Qualifying is set for 10:45 a.m. Saturday. The field for the 120-lap main event, scheduled at 3:30 p.m., will be set in a pair of 40-lap heat races. The first heat is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.

Chastain Shoots High at Dover

DOVER, Del. – Ross Chastain will be shooting for his first top-10 finish of the NASCAR Xfinity Series season in Saturday’s Ollie’s Bargain Outlet 200 at Dover International Speedway.

Chastain has scored top-20 runs in the past two Xfinity races and stands 15th in driver points entering Dover. He and the JD Motorsports with Gary Keller team are looking for a spot in the first Xfinity Chase this season.

“Dover is a fast and fun track,” said Chastain, who has raced at the fast one-mile four times (two in Xfinity, two in Camping World Truck). “If you get a handle on it, you can make up some positions really quickly there. We’re looking for a good run.”

Chastain will drive with sponsorship from the Delaware Office of Highway Safety and its “Protect Your Melon” campaign in the Dover event.

Practice is scheduled at 10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Friday. Qualifying is set for 10:45 a.m. Saturday. A pair of 40-lap heat races will set the field for the 120-lap main, which is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.

Smithley Carries Momentum to Dover

DOVER, Del. – Fresh off his best run of the season, Garrett Smithley will tackle Dover International Speedway Saturday in the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet 200 NASCAR Xfinity Series race.

Smithley will race for the first time at the super-fast one-mile track in the Heroes Haven No. 0 Chevrolet for JD Motorsports with Gary Keller. He remembers attending races at the track as a kid.

“We are on a good streak right now coming off of back-to- back career-best finishes, so we have a lot of confidence going into Dover,” Smithley said. “Dover is going be really special this weekend because it was the first NASCAR track I watched a race at in person. I was about 5 years old, so it's really cool to be making my first NASCAR Dover start. It's almost like coming full circle."

Smithley finished 12th in the most recent Xfinity race – at Talladega Superspeedway. It was his best finish of the year, placing him 18th in Xfinity points entering Dover.

Activities are scheduled to begin at Dover with practices at 10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Friday. Qualifying is scheduled at 10:45 a.m. Saturday. After a pair of 40-lap heat races, the 120-lap main event is scheduled at 3:30 p.m.

With the Sprint Fan Vote well underway, the top-five vote-getters among the field have been released. Fans are still able to cast their votes for any of the 30 drivers in the running, but the top five thus far are as follows, in alphabetical order: #31-Ryan Blaney, #83-Matt DiBenedetto, #24-Chase Elliott, #42-Kyle Larson and #10-Danica Patrick. Patrick won the Sprint Fan Vote last year and in 2013, becoming the first two-time Sprint Fan Vote winner. Young drivers

Will Change Name to DiBurrito if Elected

Elliott and Blaney currently lead the Sunoco Rookie of the Year competition, while DiBenedetto made a splash in the NASCAR scene with his emotional career-best sixth-place finish in April at Bristol Motor Speedway. Larson is coming off a run at Kansas in which he showed plenty of speed, but was caught up in a late wreck not of his own doing. Fans can vote daily by downloading the NASCAR Mobile App or visiting www.nascar.com/SprintFanVote, with votes that are shared on Facebook or Twitter counting for double. Fans have until 5:00pm/et May 20 to cast their votes and NASCAR will announce the winner of the Sprint Fan Vote in Victory Lane post-Sprint Showdown at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Friday, May 20.(NASCAR)

FLAGLER BEACH, Fla. (May 11, 2016) – After having a week off from racing, driver Ray Black Jr. is ready to get back on track as the NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) heads to Dover International Speedway for the first time this season. The driver of the No. 07 ScubaLife.com Chevrolet Camaro finished 11th despite only having fourth gear for the majority of last season’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) race at the mile-long track.

“Dover is a really fun track,” said Black. “It’s like a big Bristol Motor Speedway and I’m really looking forward to competing there this weekend, especially with the return of the Dash 4 Cash heat races – I’ve been enjoying that format of racing. Plus, we had a great race last year at Dover, even with the gear issues, so I think once we get out on the track Friday and get the hang of it again we should have another great weekend for us and the fans.”

After a tough Talladega race weekend, Black and his SS Green Light Racing team are looking to get some momentum back by securing their sixth Top-25 finish of the season at Dover International Speedway. Their best finish of the season came in April at Bristol Motor Speedway, a track very similar to Dover, when Black piloted his No. 07 ScubaLife.com Chevrolet to a 20th pace finish.

“With concrete tracks like Dover and Bristol it’s a little bit of a different racing style,” Black explained. “The grip is different and something I’ll need to adjust to for the weekend, but I think if we can get in a full weekend of practice, qualifying and the heat races we should have a solid main on our hands. Plus, we’re bringing the same car we brought to Bristol and that’s where I got my career-best XFINITY finish so I’m pretty happy about that!”

In addition to trying to tame the Monster Mile this weekend, Black will also be taking time to tour the Dover Air Force Base and participate in an autograph signing for members of the base on Friday night. Additionally, he will be hosting three members of the base during Saturday’s Ollie’s Bargain Outlet 200.

“I’m really looking forward to visiting the Dover Air Force Base and seeing everything that goes on there,” stated Black. “It’ll be really neat to see the fighter jets up close and get to talk to the pilots about everything they do. I’m excited to host some of their members on Saturday too and show them what a race day is like for us. Hopefully, we can get a good finish for them!”

The Ollie’s Bargain Outlet 200 will take place on Saturday, May 14 at 2:00 p.m. ET. Fans can tune in via FOX or MRN Radio for live coverage.

Fans can keep up with Ray Black Jr. by following him and his sponsor, ScubaLife, on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @RayBlackJr and @TeamScubaRacing. Learn more about Ray Black Jr. and Team Scuba by visiting www.rayblackjr.com and www.teamscuba.com. (SS Green Light Racing)